London has always been blessed with a wide range of colourful characters, eccentrics and oddballs, from “Jesus” who seemed to be at every gig I ever attended in the 1980’s, especially at the Marquee, the Liverpudlian “preacher” at Oxford Circus telling shoppers to repent their sins, through to the pensioner who used to tap dance in Portobello Road to name but a few. For the past dozen years or so London’s best character has been DJ Wheelie Bag, a man who plays vintage vinyl on a contraption that originally started out as an old ladies shopping trolley. To his family and friends he's plain Denys Avis, though there is nothing plain about him.  Slightly eccentric maybe, definitely colourful, DJ Wheelie Bag has been a by word for fun for those in the know. I first came across him around nine years ago when he had a residency every Wednesday at the Pillars of Hercules in Soho and was soon seduced by his blend of Jamaican Ska, Rockabilly, Rhythm & Blues and quirky rock "n" roll covers from south America. Along with dancing Barbie dolls in bondage gear, there were also general knowledge quizzes with prizes sourced from the Pound Shop in Dalston and games involving rubber bands, balloons and straws.

Hook a horseshoe on the cactus to win a prize!

The prizes are as quirky as you’d expect, electric scissors, stick on moustaches, flying pigs, Elvis glasses & wig (a bald man actually stole the wig from me on one occasion and disappeared into the Soho night!) and memorably, a bird table!

Now, not only does Denys build the one deck portable machine from scratch, (dimensions were made to fit under the stairs of a Routemaster bus!) he built them to order for his followers and by 2006 I too was the proud owner of a Wheelie Bag along with Smiler who had first introduced me to him. There’s over 30 dotted around the world and this led to the creation of an annual Wheelie Bag Ball, a sort of Miss World competition for Wheelie Bags complete with a miniature replica as the trophy. Originally based at the Irish Working Mens Club in Newington Green it finished at the 100 Club in 2009, though there was an attempt to revive it in 2011 in Euston.

The Wheelie Bag Ball trophy!

In 2009, Wheelie’s residency at The Pillars came to end and as only Wheelie could, he performed a closing ceremony in which around 100 fans gave him a rousing reception as he tore his poster down from the wall and followed him out of the pub into Greek Street, leaving 3 bemused tourists sat in the now empty pub.  Since then Wheelie has been at The Spread Eagle in Camden Town on the first Wednesday of every month and in Crazy Homies, Westbourne Park on the first Thursday as well as various events around the UK and Europe including The Rhythm Festival in August.

There’s also been a DVD about him, a pilot for a pop quiz called Sound Me Out and last year, the first Wheelie Bag Annual hit the shelves. So if you want to see what all the fuss is about get yourself down to the Spread Eagle or Crazy Homies. For more info click here!

Yours truely with DJ Wheelie Bag.

Whatever happened to The Chords? Well, it's about to be answered on a new DVD filled with television performances and interviews called What Became Of The People We Used To Be.

Of all the mod revival bands that appeared in the late 1970’s, south east London band The Chords were primed for greater success. In Chris Pope they had a driven songwriter, churning out scathingly brilliant lyrics and ear catching riffs, backed up by the powerhouse drumming of Brett “Buddy” Ascott, bassist Martin Mason and his cousin Billy Hasset on vocals and guitar. Signed to Polydor within weeks and appearing with The Purple Hearts on The London Weekend Show and gracing the cover of Time Out, it looked like The Chords were here to stay. The first single Now It’s Gone was rushed out, the band unhappy with it re-recorded it and gave it away as a free single with the album So Far Away. They followed this with Something’s Missing and Maybe Tomorrow, without doubt one of the standout records of the whole period. More tv appearances followed, a tour with The Undertones, photos and reviews in the music press, all was looking rosy. Another great single, The British Way Of Life was followed by In my Street then The Chords and Billy Hasset went their separate ways.  A delay in replacing Billy left The Chords playing catch up, Kip Herring from The Vibrators eventually filling the role for the final 2 singles One More Minute and Turn Away Again before the band called it quits permanently in 1981.  In 1996 The Chords with Grant Flemming on bass played a handful of gigs including a sold out gig at The 100 Club before returning with the original line up in 1999 to play the Mods Mayday festival in Kentish Town and a wedding in Liverpool the following year. The set from the Liverpool gig has just been released as It Was Twenty Years Ago Today available from Detour Records here.

The Chords mk. 2 LtoR Martin Mason, Kip Herring, Buddy Ascott and Chris Pope at Spice Of Life, London 2011.

When Chris Pope and Buddy Ascott started playing as Pope there was always a Chords number thrown in, sometimes even two and come 2009, a mini tour was arranged across the UK with a new single, Another Thing Coming and at the start of May this year, The Chords played in Japan and 3 dates in Australia. Of course, this is just a potted history of a band that deserved so much more. For the last couple of years, there’s been a dvd in progress, gathering up every tv performance, live footage and interviews with the band and fans of this great band and it’s launched on 14^th June at The Rhythm Factory on Whitechapel Road, with a screening and live performance from members of the band. It starts at 7.30 and is free to get in.

 

 

 

 

The Truth & Purple Hearts – Modrophenia at 229 The Venue 6th May 2012

Well it finally happened after a few false dawns but on 6^th May, The Truth made a triumphant return to the stage after 20 odd years away.  We were promised the original line up and we got it too, with Steve Phypers on drums, who it transpires had lasted 3 weeks before being replaced by Gary Wallis. It was the first night of Modrophenia, a 2 day double header that saw The Lambrettas and From The Jam play the following evening.  There was an expectant buzz in the air as The Purple Hearts took to the stage, maybe for the last time if all is to be believed, and they duly tore into their set of mod anthems with Bob Manton making full use of the stage. I only hope someone filmed it for Ian Brown so he can brush up on his moves for the Stone Roses’ forthcoming gigs.  While Jeff Shadbolt sorted out his bass during the first 2 songs, Simon Stebbings gleefully attacked his guitar pulling out powerchords and feedback as Gary Sparks powerful drumming fought for attention at the back. You know what you get with The Purple Hearts, 45 minutes of glorious pumped up teenage angst all neatly packaged into 3 minute chapters from Beat That, Jimmy, Extradordinary Sensations and Frustration while not forgetting David Jones’ Can’t Help Thinking About Me.Let’s hope it’s not the last time we get to see them.

The Purple Hearts

A quick half hour to get our breaths back and for the first time in many years, the lights dimmed as Stingray blared out into the darkness and Dennis Greaves led The Truth on stage with Mick Lister, Chris Skornia, Brian Bethell and Steve Phypers in tow. They launched into From The Heart and carried straight on in to Love A Go Go, it was like they hadn’t been away as they sounded as fresh as they did at the Marquee back in 1983, the rhythm section of Brian and Steve driving it along, Mick & Dennis’ harmonizing was superb while Chris Skornias keyboard gave the songs that full on sound.  All the favourites were there, Confusion, Exception Of Love and I’m In Tune along with choice covers of Gimme Little Sign, Nothing’s Too Good For My Baby and Ain’t Nothing But A House Party. As always the set closed with Just Can’t Seem To Stop, the crowd singing along after they depart waiting for more which duly comes with Everlasting Love, The Equals’ I Get So Excited and a second helping of Playground.  Was it worth the wait? Oh yes and then some.  Talks are underway for another gig in October and maybe a few more, possibly to coincide with a cd release of the back catalogue up to the Playground album.  Definitely something to get so excited about.

Dennis Greaves

Mick Lister

While artists like Bob Marley, Lee Perry, Prince Buster etc quite rightly take the plaudits for their genius,  we shouldn’t forget the musicians that put the music down for them, so I was very saddened to hear of the death of Lloyd Brevett,  the wonderfully charismatic bass player of The Skatalites on Thursday  3^rd May 2012.

Brevett was one of the founding members of the legendary Jamaican supergroup who have been the backbone of Jamaica’s musical heritage in one form or another, be it as The Skatalites, The Soul Bros or Sound Dimension.  I first saw The Skatalites in the late 80’s at the long gone George Canning in Brixton when there were still 5 original members playing including Lester Sterling and Lloyd Knibb on the drums, but it was Brevett who caught my attention every time, with his wonderful style of plucking the strings on his double bass and “mouthing” each pluck, looking away and checking on his band mates without skipping a note, driving each song along effortlessly. And then there was his introduction to each song. “Yes yes yes yes yes Jah Rastafari! This was a tune we wrote in the year of our Lord nineteen sixty and five and it goes like this…”
One night at the Jazz Café in 1996 he introduced his friend Prince Buster up on stage who just happened to be passing by. A quick nod to the rest of the band and off they went with Madness, a sublime moment indeed. For a man who has made so much wonderful music that continues to inspire and entertain, the circumstances of his death make it all so tragic. His son Okine had gone to collect an award on his behalf from the Jamaican Music Industry on 28^th February before being murdered outside his home later that night. Lloyd returned to Jamaica and suffered a series of strokes in mid March and was hospitalised. As an American citizen he wasn’t entitled to free medical care and due to legal disputes over The Skatalites  earnings and his family were appealing for help to pay the medical bills 2 days before he died. So sad an end for a man who at the age of seventy five announced he was leaving The Skatalites to pursue solo projects. Rest in peace Lloyd Brevett and thank you for the legacy you have left us. I'll leave you with this small clip.

 

 

 

It's that time of year when you start thinking about next year, so what better than a 2012 Mod Chronicle calendar? Filled with quotes and photos from the faces that were there including yours truly looking asleep during February! Also planned for next year is a revised reprint of Enamel Vergurens' This Is A Modern Life, the book that focused on the 1980s London Mod scene. For more information check www.modchronicles.com or modchronicles@hotmail.com

Ok, September's Sidewinder has passed but was probably the best one so far with our biggest crowd. Ian Jackson, a resident at Blow Up since it started and Martin Fuggles, DJ at the Ricky Tick in Windsor back in the 60's kept the crowd buzzing with a fine selection of club classics and dance floor groovers.

October sees young gun Ryan Brown and Roadblocks Ian Grinham sharing the decks alongside Gilo and myself. As usual it's at Satan's Circus, The Wenlock & Essex, Essex Road, Angel Islington from 7.30 - 11.30 and still free to get in!  We'll be taking a break in November as we're all going to see The Specials but shall return in December with a top guest! In the meantime, enjoy a classic from the wicked Wilson Pickett! 

Buzzcocks, Pretty Things & Steve Cropper star at The Rhythm Festivals new home.

The Rhythm Festival,  Old Wardens House, Biggleswade  26, 27, 28^th August

The 6^th year of the Rhythm Festival and the first at it’s new home in Biggleswade promised a stellar line up of artists and despite a few teething problems, pretty much delivered.  We arrived on Friday in time to see Dodgy, the earlier downpour put us off venturing to see Hazel O’Conner who was well received by those that did brave it. It was the first time I’d seen Dodgy since they reformed with the original line up and though I found it a bit pedestrian in places, was great to hear the old classsics such as  Good Enough, In A Room and Staying Out For The Summer.  The Buzzcocks followed and quickly uped the ante with gems such as What Do I Get, Promises, Harmony In My Head, Ever Fallen In Love. You name it, it was there. Sadly for me I had to slope off before the end to DJ the Silent Disco at The Ronnie Barker Stage.  Silent Disco? I hear you ask and indeed that was my first question. Turned out not to be silent and it was never going to be Disco but a mix of Northern Soul, Ska and R&B was well received to party hardy revellers untill 2 in the morning.

Nigel Clark, Dodgy.

Steve Diggle, The Buzzcocks.

Pete Shelley, The Buzzcocks.

Saturday saw Slim Chance, Nick Lowe, Imelda May and Curved Air gracing the stages and I spent most of the time in the bar watching DJ Wheelie Bag entertain the bemused before I headed off to the Silent Disco, which this time was fully functional.  To answer the earlier question, a Silent Disco involves a set of wireless headphones and two djs playing through 2 channels which are transmitted to the headphones. The wearer can then choose what to listen too by the flick of a switch and dance away in their own world. Quite a bizarre feeling looking out over a busy dancefloor and hearing people singing along (mostly out of tune I might add!) but no music pumping out.  Over the back I could see an old scooter boy dancing to my ska records while next to him was a guy playing air guitar, obviously listening to DJ Lady Fantasy on the other channel. This was soon followed by much cheering around the room as I played Booker T's Green Onions.

DJing in The Silent Disco with a legend keeping an eye on proceedings. Photo courtesy of Claudia Elliott.

Sunday started off with Stone Foundation and From The Jam, who had their set cut short due to complaints from a wedding party taking place in a nearby field. Again the rain came down just as The Pretty Things took to the stage but it didn’t last long and they played a great set mixing mod classics such as Midnight To Six Man, Don't Bring Me Down and Come See Me with a selection from SF Sorrow and of course plenty of rip snorting R&B like Mona, Roadrunner and it wouldn't have been right without Bo Diddlys' Pretty Thing. For my money, The Pretty Things are still the best 60’s band out there, they're tight, powerful and full on and leave you wanting more. 

Dick Taylor, The Pretty Things.

The Pretty Things.

Nipped into the Alborne Stage to see Nine Below Zero who were delayed by over half an hour due to overcrowding as half the festival was trying to get in to see them. Once they started, it was the usual tight performance that you always get from NBZ, a mix of R&B covers, new recordings and old favourites,  Ridin’ On The L&N always a particular crowd pleaser. In hindsight, they should have been on the main stage but for those that got in, they witnessed a blinder.

Dennis Greaves, Nine Below Zero.

Mark Feltham, Nine Below Zero.

 

Caught a little of Wheelie Bag in the bar before heading out to see The Blockheads, still keeping the music of  Ian Dury alive, his former minder Derrick the Drawl doing a fine job on vocals and the effortless bass playing of Norman Watt-Roy is always a pleasure to watch. Again, they are a tight unit and get everybody singing along to all the hits.

Norman Watt-Roy, The Blockheads.

Derrick the Drawl, The Blockheads.

The Animals soon followed with John Steele still on drums and Micky Gallagher playing his second set of the day (first was with The Blockheads). All the hits were there, bass player and vocalist Pete Barton is quite a capable frontman but I feel that sometimes the history lessons take the edge off it for me. Still when you can pull an ace out of your sleeve in the shape of Steve Cropper, who am I to complain? Cropper added an edge and to witness a man responsible for so many great soul records up close was an honour for me. Time Is Tight, 636 5789, The Midnight Hour and Dock Of The Bay ensured the crowd were left happy. Which is just aswell as Toots & The Maytals took far too long to set up. So much so, we went and watched Apart From Rod with vocalist Jim Stapely sounding very good along with members of Rod Stewarts old backing band and song writers performing tracks such as Hot Legs etc. Back to Toots in time to see his daughter take to the stage for 2 numbers before the man himself finally entered the fray. By now the rain came down and the cold had began to take hold so we headed of to see DJ Wheelie Bags Aftershow party. Once past the over zealous door man, you were treated to a feast of fun involving giant balloons, elastic bands, lengths of string and the Stylophone Challenge, all in the hope of winning a glowing rubber ball, a set of juggling balls or a stick-on-moustache. Yep, the usual madness and the perfect way to round off the weekend.  Overall, the good far outweighed the bad and I look forward to next years festival when the niggles should have been ironed out. 

Pete Barton, The Animals.

Steve Cropper with The Animals.

 

Just received the latest batch of forthcoming releases from East London label of cool Acid Jazz, so with no further ado, here's a Dave's Raves Acid Jazz special! 

Magnus Carlson & The Moon Ray Quintet – From Now On

A wonderful slab of summery, soulful pop from Magnus Carlson that if there was any justice, should be blasting out of the radio up and down the country.  It’s got a great uplifting feel  about it with a Northern Soul tempo and searching vocals.  I can see this being in my playbox for a long time to come. Flip it over and you have a great Jazz take on Donovans’ Barabajagal making this double sider an essential purchase. Click hear!

 

Andy Lewis & Jess Roberts – Good Soul In The Good Times

Andy Lewis has already put out some fantastic singles on Acid Jazz over the years and once again has come up with a belter in the shape of Good Soul In The Good Times. Jess Roberts vocal is deep and rich and it’s no wonder why Eddie Piller tried to sign her to the label years ago with this funky soulful mover perfectly showcasing her capabilities. This funky, soulful groove reminds me a lot of Mother Earth while the b side The Words Otis Sang is a lovely stripped down soulful number. Again, you won’t regret a trip to your local record shop.

 

Jasmine Kara - In The Basement pts 1 & 2

Okay, if you’re going to cover Sugar Pie Desanto and Etta James, you better bring something to the party and thankfully Jasmine Kara has with this funky take on the Chess classic. Jasmine has a big voice and the band sound like they are having a real blast on this, a sure fire dancefloor filler. Click hear!

 

The Broken Vinyl Club – One Way Street

Broken Vinyl Club recently appeared on Acid Jazzs’ Hipsters 2 compilation and have been rewarded with a single for their fine effort on that album. One Way Street features good harmonies over a garagey 60’s beat while on the b side, Day Too Long features more of the same, reminding me of The Monkees  spending a day on the studio with The Byrds. Click hear!

 

Janice Graham Band – Murder

Latest recruits to the label, Janice Graham Band are a 4 piece band from Manchester and appear to have no one called Janice in the band! Murder is a grower, dub reggae rhythms drive this along and I could envisage that if The Specials had formed today then this would probably be similar to the outcome. Assassiner on the flip is more of the same with a rap vocal but not unbearable. Click hear!

 

The Clique – The 64 Rave Up ep

Four tracks here on the latest of the Rare Mod Series that were originally only available on a mega rare privately pressed ep recorded in October 1964. Every band at the time seemed to cover Jesse Hill’s Ooh Poo Pah Doo , while See That My Grave Is Kept Clean, I must confess was a new one to me.  As you’d expect it’s raw and gritty as is another beat group standard of the time, Pretty Thing and She Ain’t No Good became the bands first single. It's rough and ready, just how we like here at Aggravation Place!

 

Sharon Tandy – From Mexico With Love

Another in the Rare Mod series this time highlighting big voiced soulstress Sharon Tandy. From Mexico With Love was her aborted entry for the 1968 Eurovision song contest and her voice is similar in places to Dusty’s as it is on the demo of Somebody Speaks Your Name. Daughter Of The Sun is another demo and the vocal is more reminiscent of Julie Driscoll while Roundabout is another unreleased cut that shows just why Sharon Tandy should have been a big star.

 

 

  

The Sidewinder keeps going from strength to strength and July's event sees Scenesvilles Nick Brown bring his mighty fine collection of Northern Soul monsters out for an airing alongside Freddie Boom Boom, who I had the pleasure of DJing with for many years at Reggae Shack and currently runs Boom Shakka Lacka once a month in Soho. Giles will be in the driving seat as I'll be sunning myself in faraway lands but never fear, I'll be back in time for Augusts' happening where it's almost a Capital Soul reunion with Alan Handscombe and Irish Greg, both of whom I've shared the decks with many times over the last 25 years. In fact the first night I promoted was alongside Alan but that's a story for another day!  And September and October already promise to be crackers with some exciting DJs lined up but that news can wait for a bit longer.....

The Trains - The Nashville Ramblers  UT  Records

Back in 1986, Tony Meynell of Squire released a compilation on his Hi Lo label of American Mod/60’s bands such as Manual Scan, Mod Fun, The Key and Modest Proposal. However, one track by San Diego based The Nashville Ramblers stole the show and now 25 years later it finally gets a release as a 7 inch single. And it still sounds fantastic to this day, a beautifully crafted slice of west coast pop, with great harmonies reminiscent of The Hollies and The Everly Brothers with a jangly Byrds guitar riff thrown in for good measure.  It could have been recorded in 1965, it could even have been recorded yesterday, it sounds old but not dated, yet fresh and inspiring and to my ears that makes perfect pop. And the 25 year wait for the 45 has been well worth it. Click hear! for a live track from a 1985 show.

 

She Kissed Me - Frankie Beverly Fairmount F1012

If like me you first encountered Northern Soul in the early 80’s, no doubt one of the first records you would have heard would have been If That’s What You Wanted by Frank Beverly & The Butlers on the Inferno label while at the same time, Frank Beverly was having hits with Maze. Original copies of If That’s What You Wanted on Sassy are now going for £300 but this little gem you can pick for less than a third of that.  A hand clapping intro with a  quick blast of horns interjected throughout, if it don’t get you dancing it’ll get your feet tapping. Click hear!

 

Honey Child - Bobby Bland Vocalion VP 9222

Undoubtably one of the greatest Blues voices, Bobby Bland cut a host of fine singles for Don Robeys’ Duke imprint in Houston, Texas. Luckily for us Brits, someone had the fine sense to release many of them in the UK on the Vocalion label such as this cracking dancer. Written by Roby under the pseudonym of D. Malone, Blands voice powers over a great brass arrangement with a catchy guitar riff coming to fore as the record comes to a close. Click hear! 

 

Magic Potion – The Open Mind ACME

Re-issues can be a sore subject for many record collectors, I myself would rather have an original but sometimes the chances of finding what you’re looking for are nigh on impossible. One such example is this gem from 1969 originally released on the Phillips label. I don’t usually endorse psych, most of it is mind numbing twaddle to my ears though there is always the odd exception such as this. Hailing from west London, the Open Mind released 2 singles and an album and with prices hitting nearly 4 figures for one of these on Phillips if you ever see it, this re-issue for  £6 will suffice nicely. Click hear!